編者按
　　项目经理的角色定位是什么？VUCA时代，项目经理如何开展变更管理？如何对待风险？如何与相关方有效沟通？如何向上管理？人工智能将为项目经理这一职位带来怎样的影响？带着以上问题，我们采访了2019年IPMA“年度青年项目经理奖”和2018年澳大利亚项目管理协会（AIPM） “未来项目领导者奖”得主——帕特里克·莱希（Patrick Leahy）。
　　帕特里克·莱希是一名客户方项目管理专业人员，从业十余年，拥有出色的沟通能力，能够在严格的时间限制内有效地管理多项任务。让我们一起倾听来自一线优秀项目经理的心路历程和经验分享。
　　Interview
　　The Enjoyable Part of PM Lies in Challenges
　　You have been in this field for over ten years； what are the enjoyable and challenging parts of being a project manager
　　Patrick Leahy： The things I enjoy the most are quite often things that challenge me the most.
　　Diversity of issues. Construction projects will always leave you saying， “I haven’t seen that one before”. Whether it be developing a design solution to a complex engineering requirement， tailoring a procurement activity to strict rules or uncovering unexpected finds on-site， you never know what tomorrow will bring. I find the challenge of developing a process for dealing with an unconventional issue and managing the process to a successful outcome to be very rewarding.
　　People. As a project manager， you deal with many people with a diverse range of experience and backgrounds. You become privy to a huge amount of information； however， you need to tailor your communication and engagement approach to every individual to ensure that you get the best result for your project.
　　Project Manager Is a Facilitator
　　How will you describe the work of a project manager to a newcomer
　　Patrick Leahy： I’ve always struggled with this question. I remember trying to explain my new job as a client-side project manager to my grandfather， who was a lifetime electrician. Every time I explained my role， he would always respond with “so what do you actually do ”
　　The title ‘Project Manager’ is incredibly broad and it will mean different things to different people. I like to describe the role of a project manager as being a facilitator. Primarily you are responsible for identifying what needs to be done， who are the best people to complete each task and then you make sure everything gets done. Sure， there will be countless intricacies along the way； however， it generally comes back to those three main aspects. As a project manager， you must always challenge yourself to add value to every step of the process.
　　Communication Style Is What Most Characterizes a Project Manager
　　Have you observed some differences between male and female project managers 　　Patrick Leahy： I don’t believe so. Project management is a skillset which is not gender-based， but primarily personality-based. Every individual project manager will have a different approach. As our profession is heavily reliant on engagement， the way you communicate with stakeholders is what most characterizes a project manager.
　　Since communication is so important， in your opinion， what are the secrets of successful communication
　　Patrick Leahy： Always be upfront and transparent. As a project manager， you will be dealing with people of various professions and areas of expertise. No matter what type of projects you are dealing with， you can be assured that your audience will likely be an educated one. People can see ulterior motives from a mile away.
　　If you come to a meeting table with a hidden agenda or try to sneak decisions through unnoticed， you will be found out. Once you lose the trust of your colleagues， the project team or worse， your client， it is very hard to regain that trust.
　　There’s No ‘I’ in Project Success
　　In your opinion， what are the top qualities that enable you to win the IPMA “Young Project Manager of the Year” Award
　　Patrick Leahy： Having success as a project manager is not an independent accomplishment. I have had a lot of support from the company I work for， the project team as well as the client team that I have worked with.
　　I believe the most important thing for a young project manager is to be open to challenges. See every step as an opportunity not only to learn， but also to think creatively. Don’t wait and listen to other people’s thoughts or opinions or be told what to do first， but challenge yourself to develop your own approach and then consult others.
　　There was an element of luck for me to get an opportunity to work on such a complex and one-of-akind construction and engineering project at an early stage of my career. Some people will go their whole career without such an opportunity. My advice to young project managers is that once you do get an opportunity to work on a unique project that you enjoy， don’t take it for granted. Dive headlong into the project and give it your all. Seeing something through from start to finish can be a career-building move.
　　It’s said that you are good at collaborative management style； would you please explain it
　　Patrick Leahy： One of my favourite sporting sayings is that there is no ‘I’ in ‘team’. The same holds true for project success. 　　There is no reason for a project manager to dominate or overcontrol situations or meetings. A well-run project is one that has the right people in the room at the right time. A project manager’s role is to ensure that information is available to all parties and that all opinions are explored during the process.
　　When working with an internal team of varying levels of experience， it is equally important to listen to everybody’s ideas and approach. Ideas from people of different generations or backgrounds will inevitably lead to innovation， which our industry badly needs.
　　Never Lose Momentum
　　Would you please offer some tips on change management and stakeholder management based on your experience
　　Patrick Leahy： My advice on change management is to never lose momentum. There are thousands of ways to deal with change management and there is certainly no one-size-fits-all approach. Once you find the right approach， do not take your foot off the peddle. Keep your engagement with the team up. If you end up with a stop / start approach， you will find yourself covering the same ground again.
　　Stakeholder management is a key responsibility of a project manager. Establishing an appropriate governance structure should be your first task and it is not a set-and-forget item. Ensuring that there is ongoing buy-in from all stakeholders will go a long way to you achieving your project goals.
　　You need to form relationships with your stakeholders. You don’t necessarily need to be friends with everyone； however， relationships build trust and trust is critical. Relationships also allow you to find out what drives individuals. For example， asking simple questions may allow you to learn that a member of your design team might be a single parent and having early morning meetings could have a large impact on their life outside of work. It is also important to develop relationships with key stakeholders and to ensure these relationships are maintained even when encountering difficult decisions or differences of opinions.
　　Bad News Never Gets Better with Age
　　In VUCA era， how do you view risk management Do you have some experience to share
　　Patrick Leahy： VUCA （Volatility， Uncertainty， Complexity and Ambiguity） sounds like a normal Monday morning in the construction industry.
　　I have seen teams create risk registers at the start of a project and never refer to them again. Issues will continually develop and evolve. If you as a project manager are not alert to them， they will become risks.